Beloved of Premier League footballers, Beats headphones, with their distinctive red wires, have become a familiar sight on the streets. The hip-hop cache provided by their creator, Dr Dre, has been a big part of that success.

With Beats Executive though, the brand is targeting an older, less flashy market. They are aimed squarely at the frequent flyer, corporate crowd and offer a serious challenge to Bose's QuietComfort range by incorporating active noise-cancelling electronics.

Aesthetically, Beats Executive are a great success. The shiny plastics and garish branding of ordinary Beats headphones are gone, replaced by subtlety and an all-over quality feel. There's no mention of Dr Dre anywhere.

All brushed aluminium and soft leather, they look and feel tailored for globe-trotting executives.

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The materials used mean this is not a light headset, but enough care has been taken with the padding and adjustability that once you have them on it's easy to drift off to music on a long haul flight, or settle in for a movie in relative seclusion without feeling weighed down.

The noise cancelling, powered by two AAA batteries, is excellent, and as good as that offered by Bose. It can be turned on or off via a switch on the right earpiece, and used without listening to anything, if silence and sleep is all you crave. Beats claims the batteries last 25 hours and I achieved about that on two recent trips.

The sound has that distinctive Beats quality - plenty of bass - although it is nowhere near as unbalanced as on their standard headphones and is generally excellent.

They're not cheap, but the sound is almost on a par with Bose's offerings, and for my money, the hardware is better put together and looks nicer.

The in-line remote control offered the only disappointment, as although perfectly well made and serviceable, it is cast in plastic and just not as nice as the headphones.

Such a minor gripe would not stop Beats Executive headphones becoming an essential part of my travel kit, however.